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What Is This Thing Called Science? Fourth Edition

by Alan F. Chalmers (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 108 ratings
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Co-published with the University of Queensland Press. HPC holds rights in North America and U. S. Dependencies.

Since its first publication in 1976, Alan Chalmers's highly regarded and widely read work--translated into eighteen languages--has become a classic introduction to the scientific method, known for its accessibility to beginners and its value as a resource for advanced students and scholars.

In addition to overall improvements and updates inspired by Chalmers's experience as a teacher, comments from his readers, and recent developments in the field, this fourth edition features an extensive chapter-long postscript that draws on his research into the history of atomism to illustrate important themes in the philosophy of science. Identifying the qualitative difference between knowledge of atoms as it figures in contemporary science and metaphysical speculations about atoms common in philosophy since the time of Democritus offers a revealing and instructive way to address the question at the heart of this groundbreaking work: What is this thing called science?

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  1. ISBN-10
    162466038X
  2. ISBN-13
    978-1624660382
  3. Edition
    Fourth
  4. Publisher
    Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.
  5. Publication date
    September 15, 2013
  6. Language
    English
  7. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
  8. Print length
    304 pages
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Comments on the previous edition: This timely and valuable revision will do much to preserve What is this thing called Science? as the best overall introductory textbook in the philosophy of science available in the English language. The new chapters give an insightful and concise treatment of major developments in the field from the last two decades, in the same accessible and lively style that made the first two editions such successes. . . . I would recommend the new edition heartily. . . . --Hasok Chang, University College London

About the Author

Alan Chalmers is Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Sydney, where he has taught since 1971.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.; Fourth edition (September 15, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 162466038X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1624660382
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 108 ratings

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A. F. Chalmers

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
108 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Jon D
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent and exceptionally well-written overview of a complex field
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2020
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As a professor in a science department at a major US university, I find many graduate students training for careers in the sciences do not really know what "Science" even really is. They perhaps know their own narrow questions and methods in their chosen sub-discipline, but often lack a broader understanding of principles of basic logic (formal and informal) and of basic history and philosophy of science itself. Alan Chalmers' book is careful, thorough, entertaining, and exceptionally well written and informative. This book should be required reading for every practicing scientist, for every graduate student in the sciences, and for every undergraduate considering a future as a scientist, regardless of discipline.
2 people found this helpful
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Andre Paulino de Lima
5.0 out of 5 stars Introduction to Philosophy of Science
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2018
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I would recommend this book to any grad student! The subject is dense and known to be very counterintuitive, but the author does a good job in enlightening the discussions with plenty of historical examples. If you happen to be reading it now (or considering to), I would recommend you to watch the "Introduction to Philosophy of Science" course that Prof. Phil Hoyningen-Huene lectured in Winter/2010. The lectures were recorded and are available in his channel on Youtube (PHoyningen).
As a side note, I wonder why I did not see anyone tracing parallels between Inductivism (and its flaws) and Big Data, Data Science today.
3 people found this helpful
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Michael F. Goodman
4.0 out of 5 stars This is a very good book for use in introductory Philosophy of Science courses
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2015
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This is a very good book for use in introductory Philosophy of Science courses. As a secondary reader, you'll need to supplement the text with actual readings from philosophers of science. For example, while Chalmer's chapter on Thomas Kuhn is well done, you can only go into so much depth about Kuhn's program in 22 pages. It needs supplementing with a reading from Kuhn; let Kuhn do some talking, as it were. I do think Chalmers spends too much time on falsificationism (3 chapters), even though that theory of science was enormously influential for a time. The other thing is that I would have liked Chalmers to have included more work on the two primary goals of science, to wit, explanation and prediction, and what philosophers of science have had to say about these concepts, what problems exist and so on. So, for example, there is no sustained study in the book on Carl Hempel's Deductive-Nomological model of scientific explanation. That's just one example. While I know that Chalmer's can't do everything in the book that he/we would like, some things are missing that shouldn't be. Good, book, though; well written, good examples from the history of science, a lot to talk about.
7 people found this helpful
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Khana
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, easy to read material
Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2014
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I got this as a textbook for a Philosophy of Science class, and I honestly enjoyed the read. That's not really normal! Even for me!

Seriously, it made me wish that I was taught these concepts in high school. While I fear that many high schoolers would be a less than pleased with the information density - it is, after all, suitable for a university class - it nonetheless presents information in an extremely helpful way, to better understand what exactly science is, and just as importantly, what it is not.

This is definitely going to be added to my "recommended" list of books!
9 people found this helpful
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Bartlondee
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent introduction to POS
Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2022
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Highly accessible and well written.
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Alvaro
5.0 out of 5 stars A very good exposition about the diverse philosophical views to what consists ...
Reviewed in the United States on November 2, 2016
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A very good exposition about the diverse philosophical views to what consists the scientific knowledge.It can be read and understood by the begginer and appreciated by the initiated.
One person found this helpful
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Ian Snape
5.0 out of 5 stars A first rate book
Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2014
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This really is a great introduction to the topic. A must have for students and researchers alike and there is a reason it is so widely represented in University courses.
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Laura Hartness
4.0 out of 5 stars Thorough Examination of the Philosophy of Science
Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2019
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This was required reading for my Philosophy of Science course at Southern Evangelical Seminary. I was initially put off by the superficial factors of the poor cover art (Is the weird cat drawing a reference to a Gestalt image?) and seemingly juvenile choice of title. However, this work has endured for decades and multiple reprints for a reason. It is a thorough examination of the philosophy of science. Charmers examines many schools of thought, sometimes weighing in on what he agrees with and what he doesn’t. He utilizes many real-world examples to aid the reader in understanding various theories. I am not a Philosophy major, so a substantial portion of the content did not resonate with me, but I can appreciate this text as a quality title in the genre.
3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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MJR
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 23, 2023
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Book in great condition. Great price. Arrived promptly.
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Mariano Venanzi
5.0 out of 5 stars Introduzione al metodo scientifico
Reviewed in Italy on December 1, 2022
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Ottima e autorevole introduzione al metodo scientifico e alla filosofia della scienza in un liguaggio accessibile.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A very good book
Reviewed in India on June 9, 2022
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Best book to start reading on philosophy of science. Very crisp writing and enjoyed reading it.
One person found this helpful
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J. S. Bragdon
4.0 out of 5 stars Jargon-free, focused description and comparison of main operative definitions of science.
Reviewed in Germany on January 15, 2017
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I missed a more critical awareness of the limitations inherent to scientific knowledge of the world, and the complementary necessity of other, e.g. non-computational, modes of enquiry.
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Matthew Washington
5.0 out of 5 stars An important introductory work - something all who have interest in the nature& value of "knowledge" in our culture should read
Reviewed in Australia on August 1, 2018
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Alan Chalmers demystifies and elucidates many important issues in the Philosophy of Ccience. I was lucky enough to be study philosphy when he was teaching at Sydney Uni and can note that this updated version of this book does not flinch in looking at the difficulties with more recent trends in the philosophy of Science. I would suggest all of those studying in the sciences need to read this book!
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